Ong Wei Ting’s digital illustrations caught our attention. Little did we know, she actually does everything! From producing to directing, art directing to illustrating. Read about her detailed feature of all that she does!

Gideon: I definitely have an interest in designing books and other printed objects. I also see it as a really practical tool, for one to have both the technical and artistic ability in giving form to (one’s) ideas and explorations, on top of its value in other commercial applications. In a way, the works are really just materialised outcomes of my other activities beyond graphic design.

Ice cream trucks and vans were a common sight during the 80s to 90s (and even before then), but not as much now. It’s heartening to know that upcoming generations are realizing this. This topic was also listed in the Singapore Memory Project and it’s the absence of these that makes our culture seem like it’s fading away. Jolyn Ong manages to bring light to this with Commonfolk.

Amongst the highly populated works, another work that stood out to us at DECK was one visual that was framed up. It was by Gabe Chen, a fashion photographer who presented Ambivalence. It is based on the Renaissance era, a period that we were also inspired by. Having had worked for a Publishing house ourselves, with photo shoots involved, we understood what went on behind the scenes. The casting of the model, picking the right hair and makeup artist, sourcing of apparels, lighting, venue, and even before then the conceptualization, it all had to be tied in together. It’s not all glamour, though it very much seems that way. Having seen this level of fashion photography on par to industry standards doesn’t happen very often. Thus we caught up with Gabe to find out more about his journey and Ambivalence.

When communication design meets embroidery, the less practiced craft becomes a medium to express an idea. While looking through the works at DECK, we were intrigued to see embroidery being presented amongst the more digitally influenced ones. Khor Serene’s “Let’s All Do A Little Bit More” speaks about the values of craft as a way to disrupt our everyday lives. In which daily routined actions (though mindless) may be seen as more productive by the mass. We caught up with her to find out more about her journey and work.

One of the few works that caught our eye was Abigail’s. Her message to people; to show the beauty of animals, to save them. Her mode of communication was interesting. She actually went around a park to collect remnants of life forms. Rodent bones, feathers, shells etc. We briefly caught up with her to find out more about her work, Extinction.

Miniature creations are seen quite often but not when it comes to local delights. Veavee Ng of Fun With ARtz has not only made her passion into wearables but also offers workshops for keen learners who want to experience the process of making miniature pieces. Her creations include Croissants, Steamboat, Nonya Kueh, Steamed Buns, Wanton Noodles and many more. The level of detail we see in her works are commendable considering the size in which it’s being produced at. We caught up with her to find out more about what she does!

The Girl With A Radio Mind is none other than Lynn. She works as a creative head and expresses herself further by playing around with the Bohemian art. The array of colours and intricate patterns are hand sewn on various products like pillows, waist pouches and passport wallets. Already with over 2,000 admirers with a 5 star rating on her Etsy store, you can be assured about the quality of her products. We also caught up with her and spoke to her a bit more about what she does.

David Ling of Chamber Decals has been around for over 10 years! Many might think decals are just decals, but the work that goes behind it is the same as any creative project – from draft to process to final artwork. Did you also know it’s a better option than wallpapers? David shares with us why, as well as how his friend got him started in this, resulting in numerous projects for Chamber Decals!

Mathyr is the Founder of GoSolo SG where he creates custom snapbacks and more. Think (proudly) ‘Made In Singapore’. Yes, something you don’t see very often. Very few makers in Singapore are actually going the extra mile by making products themselves, and Mathyr is one of them. We were very intrigued by his craft of making snapbacks and he generously shared with us how he got into making snapbacks and the process behind these custom snapbacks.

Going by Qin, she doodles every day events and keeps them documented on her Tumblr and Instagram. Her humour and light outlook on life is evident in her illustrations where she titles it, ‘Life of Qin’. What we really wanted to share was how she documents interesting happenings in her life in the form of doodles and shares it with the world. To us, it’s more meaningful than taking snaps of random things and sharing it just to get attention and likes. Moreover, her love for cats goes a long way. She sells merchandises of her illustrations in which an amount of the sale goes to cat organisations. We caught up with her and found out what made her doodle her life.

Yunroo is an illustrator who has won numerous awards including the D&AD Student Awards, and has had her works displayed in various exhibitions. A full showcase of her distinct style across different works can be better seen at her website. She has recently worked on illustrating a book written by Eve Aw, which can be bought at Epigram Books. We caught up with her to find out more about her and the book.

Zack Tan of zackartz is a self taught painter who paints the meaning behind a painting. He believes that the world needs a change in perspective and he wants to use his works to change it. Working mainly with oil paints, they are mostly of nature and scenic depictions as it gives him a sense of peace. For him, every artwork doesn’t come easy as it’s done from the heart, not just the mind.

Brick Artist, Jeffrey Kong of Artisan Bricks works with lego bricks to create various items. From structures like Rochester Park’s Starbucks to Retro playgrounds and even the Star Wars character R2-D2. He has been gaining recognition ever since he was awarded Grand Winner in The Joy of Lego’s mural design competition in 2012. He was also recently commissioned to create a model of the Lifelong Learning Institute building by Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA). The piece consists of 3,000 bricks where WDA staffs helped to put bricks on the facade. We caught up with him and found out more about his other works and how he started.

I’m Jun Yi from Singapore, my friends call me JY since it’s easier for everyone. I’m 15 and currently studying in Saint Joseph’s International. I took pictures with an iPod touch when I was 12 but never bothered to post any of them online.

We were hopping around on Instagram when we chanced upon Brenton Huang. It’s where we saw guitars being cut open and being used as a form of storage, as a shelf. We knew he was crafty and found out that he also changed old seat covers with a new fabric, and also created a clock with a chopping board and some spare clock parts. He upcycles almost everything but we decided to speak to him more about his Guitar Shelves.

We were baffled (in a good way) by Heizal Jia Xin’s work initially when we saw her images. We couldn’t really make out what it was until we read her explanation and concept. Till now, we’re still bewildered by how she has taken these images and we bet you’ve never seen ice cream interpreted like this before. We spoke to Heizal to find out more about the story behind these images.

Alex Wong, a photographer we stumbled upon at Unsplash and were somehow drawn to his images amongst the many stunning shots others have contributed. We took a liking and searched more of his images. Lo and behold, he’s actually from Singapore. So we got in touch with him as we wanted to share his works with you. He shares with us 10 of his images and how he got into photography. (Fun fact, we’re using his image for our Facebook cover photo!)

Team Highness is focused on promoting the local hip-hop scene in Singapore. Founded by Rauzan Rahman and Rafidah Rahman, the duo has branched out into podcasts, live events and their own online tv on youtube. They also have the support of rappers Shigga Shay, Mean, G-Preme, Sweetch, Rifat Lockshire, Kira and many more. We spoke to Rauzan to find out more about what they do and the different segments they are covering.

Averinewyou also known as Amanda Ong, does digital illustrations, paintings and sketches. Her understanding of contours is evident in her painting of The Fault in Our Stars, with attention to details of hair curls and the shadowing of facial features.

We spoke to Leonard and Jean of Visualtroop and were heartened to learn about them. We don’t find many with similar scopes of what we do, thus were delighted when we found out that they dedicate their job to helping artists as well. Visualtroop offers a platform for artists to have their works printed on a variety of items; Art Prints, Frames, Tote Bags, T-shirts, Cards, Throw Pillows and more, which are then sold through their online store. They get it manufactured for you, so all you’ll have to do is provide the artwork. We asked Jean and Leonard a little more about Visualtroop.

Most of us are working day jobs and pursuing our passion at night. Caleb Yeo is no exception. His illustrations remind us of events happening in the local context. His first series, Life of a Recruit speaks of what every Singaporean man goes through in National Service and the different phases just in Basic Military Training alone. His other series is of sketches inspired by the Japanese anime’s concept of Titans. He says it’s “like giants fighting right in our midst but invisible to the human eye. An amalgamation of various characters that I personally like”. Its also coupled with a local backdrop of HDB’s and rivers. Caleb tells us more.

Catherine Ramos’ Daily Grind: Everyday Colour reminded us that pictures are meant to capture a moment – that particular moment where you spot something worth capturing. Some of us would usually move away from that very spot, in hopes of capturing a better composition. Her shots bring us through the view of hers. Her very eyes and not that of the surroundings. That of a story, an experience that we can almost immediately feel and not take a second to absorb what’s going on in the shot. We see ourselves being there at that spot where she was.

Emile Dumont is a lecturer at LASALLE as well as the founder of Creative Fitness SG. Catered more for the performing arts, he conducts classes for individuals who want to explore and increase their freedom of expression. Appreciation for the performing arts have gradually been increasing but the amount of work that goes behind putting up a performance often goes unrecognized, let alone the work that takes to groom the performers. We found out more about Emile and the classes he conducts for these performers.

Joshua Wang is a wall muralist. His work titled Fantasy Red Sea, is based off the biblical event from the parting of the Red Sea. What we like about his story is that doodles and illustrations need not just be expressed through posters or left in sketchbooks. They should make a difference in someone’s life. Art and creativity should be put to better use, whether it’s adding value or for aesthetic purposes. Joshua explains more about Fantasy Red Sea which he drew on the wall of his friend’s living space.

Annamei Forbes creates bracelets made from beads and other embellishments. Her made to order bracelets started out as something she enjoyed doing for herself and soon after became sought after by her peers. She’s currently taking a degree in biotechnology, as her passion lies in biology. Which is also why we like her story as individuals need to know that craft and its creativity is not limited to professionals. Everyone has a creative story to tell, whether you’re a doctor, a banker or a teacher. Read a little more about her latest collection inspired from the Greek Gods.

SAN BY THANG WL is a high street menswear label by Thang Wei Lun. He has been making waves in the region, as well as having his pieces shown at the recent Digital Fashion Week. Apart from his fashion pieces, he also collaborated with famous Mexican illustrator Mario Mendez to come up with illustrations for his collection. Mario has illustrated for brands like Dior, Givenchy, Junya Watanabe and Comme des Garçons. We really like how the facial features of the different ethnic groups were cleverly portrayed. Not to mention how they are all emotionless alongside their distinct hairstyles. These factors really helped complement the collection and accentuate the whole look.

Kit Min talks about her project, Beneath The Abyss, a continuous illustrative piece which was hand drawn. It was the meaning behind it that we really liked apart from the style and it being on a scale of over 1 metre long. What we got from it was how one will only be able to find one’s true self upon total solitude. No distractions, influences or any other external factors. Kit Min explains more about it.

Sebastian Erazo Fischer from Berlin works with wood to create furniture pieces by hand. It’s such bespoke craft and expertise (or the lack thereof in the world) that we hope more will appreciate. He started off as an Architect but soon found his love for wood and went into learning more in depth about the material. What started off as a hobby has since evolved into projects for clients. We’ve chosen to feature one of a custom bedroom unit and another done just recently in a bar.